Usage

Rankings are out of the Jets 17 forwards with 50+ 5v5 minutes, except special team minutes are each out of 11 Jet forwards.

It may be surprising to some how Wheeler was not often the first choice for even strength situations. Wheeler did log a tonne of minutes though with being the primary power play option and taking up a chunk of short handed action.

Wheeler was not overly deployed in the offensive or defensive zone relative to the other or the team. He faced top competition while predominately playing with the Jets best players.

Underlying Numbers

Wheeler also out performed his ice time peers in shot attempt differentials pretty consistently.

Blake Wheeler started the season with Mark Scheifele, and had a rotating crew of Dustin Byfuglien, Mathieu Perreault, and Evander Kane as the other winger. Maurice then reunited Ladd’s-Little-Wheeler, only to break it up after Wheeler returned from injury.

Wheeler out scored his opponents throughout the season, and he out shot them as well. The only exception is the end of the season, where Scheifele and Wheeler played with Drew Stafford and the three were significantly out shot.

Wheeler produced points for 5v5 situations at a pace above the 2 point per sixty minute median for first line players.

dCorsi suggests that Wheeler performed as expected given his ice time and deployment.

Goals Above Replacement, which combines face offs, shot differentials, penalty differentials, and shooter performance, estimates that Wheeler had the second largest impact on the Jets overall goal differential.

Final Thoughts

Wheeler has always been a fantastic scorer but he’s also developed a bit more of an overall, 200-foot game to his resume while under Paul Maurice.

Wheeler performed well throughout the season but there are some concerns with constant the attempts to force chemistry between Wheeler and Mark Scheifele. Wheeler posted a 56.8 per cent zone-start adjusted Corsi with Bryan Little, compared to the 52.9 per cent Corsi rating with Scheifele.

Although, the impact difference is in part due to the possession anchor Drew Stafford. When Stafford was paired with Wheeler, the Jets posted a grotesque 46.0 Corsi percentage. For context, the only winger Wheeler spent more time with was Andrew Ladd, where together they carried a 56.1 Corsi.

Essentially the Jets were out attempted like the New Jersey Devils or Toronto Maple Leafs for minutes when Wheeler was with Stafford, but out attempted opponents better than the Chicago Blackhawks or Tampa Bay Lightning did when Wheeler was apart.

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“Essentially the Jets were out attempted like the New Jersey Devils or Toronto Maple Leafs for minutes when Wheeler was with Stafford, but out attempted opponents better than the Chicago Blackhawks or Tampa Bay Lightning did when Wheeler was apart.”